When Jackals Drown
by Tabby J Skylark
Summary: While the ducks vacation in Egypt they must solve a frightening, ancient mystery along side an old enemy.
1. Fredrico Martinez

WHEN JACKALS DROWN  
  
Chapter One: Fredrico Martinez  
  
~~~  
  
DISCLAIMER:  
  
Mighty Ducks the Animated Series belongs to Disney. Everything else is either history, religion or mythology.   
  
A/N:  
  
This story was written back in PUBLIC SCHOOL... AH... That was 5-6 years ago, ladies and gents... I've come a long way since, but hey, I wanna post it all the same... (even though it's EMBARASSING!) Please pardon all errors, inaccuracies, etc... PLEASE review! ^_^  
  
~~~  
  
Duke sighed as he watched Wildwing struggle with his camel. He'd never seen such creatures… they weren't quite horses… they weren't quite cows… They were disgusting! Phil HAD to be joking if he expected them to pose with the creatures - if he expected fans to WANT such - It gummed him. EW. It actually… EW. This was too much.   
  
"This rots." Mallory grumbled. "We're suppose to be on vacation."  
  
"You read my m-"   
  
"Who was the idiot who invited Phil anyway?" she continued, ignoring.  
  
"Phil." he muttered. It was true. Their manager had invited himself along for the adventure. He wanted to share a dream vacation with "friends" and snatch every marketing opportunity along the way. He never missed a photo op. It was so trying it was almost depressing…   
  
"AH!" Tanya recoiled, her camel drooling on her neck unexpectedly.   
  
"A little… help here…" their leader was still struggling with his.  
  
"Show old Fester who's the boss, bro!" Nosedive was riding his around.  
  
"Off that! Off that!" the man who owned them was shouting.  
  
"No! No!" Phil was protested. "This is the perfect shot, babella!"  
  
"You say that about absolutely everything." Grin muttered. "Even when we   
take pit stops… I mean, PLEASE, man. Me SLEEPING was the perfect shot!"  
  
"Fans want anything and everything, kids - especially sleep shots. They want your Kindergarten pictures, for Christ's sa-"  
  
"Even Grin's fed up, Phil." Mallory agreed. "Enough is enough."  
  
"AH!" Wing let out a short cry as his camel started dragging him.  
  
"Man. When I said I wanted a pony I was wrong. I want THIS." Nosedive hopped casually off his camel. "What's mine called again?"  
  
The man sighed, taking the reins. "Fester."  
  
"I thought Wing's was called Fester?" Dive stopped.  
  
"It is. They're all called Fester." The man replied.  
  
"Can I rename mine?" Nosedive looked hopefully.   
  
"No."  
  
"Oh, well. Fester's not SO terrible. I can live with it… Hey! Where are   
you taking our camels?"  
  
"They're HIS camels." Mallory reminded him, annoyed.  
  
"We were only borrowing them some pictures." Phil changed his film.  
  
"What? Why wasn't I informed?" Nosedive looked crushed.  
  
"You were. Twice. I told you not to get attached." Phil was blunt - already walking, the man never missed a beat.   
  
Wing returned, panting a little. "That poor man has to chase Fester. He… (possibly she)… ran away."  
  
"My Fester?" Nosedive turned to him. "Or your Fester?"  
  
"I think its Tanya's." was the honest reply.  
  
"Well." Duke smirked. "We KNOW its not mine. Mine had TWO humps."  
  
"Moving on!" Phil started to usher them away from the spot.  
  
"Say!" Tanya noticed someone selling necklaces in the street.  
  
"No." Phil pushed her on. "Taken several pictures of you there already."  
  
"But I haven't…" she started, confused.  
  
"You were standing next to it." Phil confirmed. "Now, that mysterious booth way… way… way down there. We haven't been anywhere near it yet. Now, there's a photo-"  
  
"Phil!" Mallory stopped. "This is OUR vacation."  
  
"And we chose to go and see the mysterious booth!" Dive cheerfully started running down the ally.  
  
"Mysterious? More like… creepy…" his brother hesitated before following at a normal pace. "I hate to sound cliché here people… but usually visiting these sorts of booth in market places brings misfortune. I don't want to end up with some monkey paw-"  
  
"You watch too much television!" Phil urged them all on.  
  
"It was a book-" Wing started to correct, but was shoved forward instead.  
  
Eventually, they reached the mysterious booth, with its mysterious booth keeper and saw that Nosedive was already in deep conversation with him.  
"So… how does this crystal of death work?" Nosedive was examining what looked like a large black diamond.  
  
"I'll take that." Wing quickly snatched it away.  
  
"What about this?" Nosedive picked about a dangerous looking weapon.  
  
"Oh fine." Wing handed back the diamond of death.   
  
"The crystal of death is not to ever be possessed by mortals." The shopkeeper whispered mystically… "Lucky for you it's on sale for $9.99 American!" he added quickly and cheerfully, his voice changing.  
  
Nosedive didn't even notice. "Sounds sweet." He paid cash.  
  
"Dive!" Mallory hissed. "I hate to be prejudice against mysterious marketplace booths… but I don't think-"  
  
"Want to hold it?" Dive showed her.  
  
Without a word she examined it. It was BEAUTIFUL.  
  
Wildwing sighed, almost rolling his eyes, as he asked the salesman what else was known about his little brother's death crystal…  
  
"Other than the fact it brings certain death to all who own it? Nothing." The fellow shrugged.   
  
Wildwing's smile froze across his face. Through gritted teeth he forced a pleasant tone, "What else have you got?"  
  
~~~  
  
Scrape… scratch… scrape…  
  
The sound could be heard faintly through the pitch. It continued for several moments, obviously coming from the other side of the ancient wall…   
  
Scrape… scratch… scrape…  
  
The sound of muffled, quiet conversation accompanied the sound of tools working away on said wall could now be heard…   
  
Scratch… scratch… scratch…  
  
BOOM!  
  
The buried room was suddenly filled with dusty light. Not much, but enough to make out all the ancient relics and perfectly preserved artifacts. The hryogliphics upon the walls told dozens of forgotten stories.   
  
"Finally…" a younger voice sighed, out of sight.  
  
A tool poked through the hole and began to enlarge it, clearing away all rubble. More light flooded into the small, musty chamber.   
  
Suddenly, a handsome face, peered through the opening. Shocking aqua hair and deep brown eyes surveyed the secrets of the ancients. It was their first major discovery in weeks.  
  
"Well?" a cheerful British accent prompted from behind him, hidden.  
  
"Excellent. I'm going in." he replied, face still looking through.  
  
"Are you sure the fresh air won't-"  
  
"Trust me."  
  
"And nothing's going to collapse, damage or disturb-"  
  
"TRUST ME." His face was suddenly gone.   
  
After a moment, tools returned and the hole grew enough for an adult male to carefully crawl through; they wished to leave as much untouched as humanly possible. The tools stopped and vanished… all was silent for a moment… when unexpectedly, the young man started to worm through.   
  
"Careful." The accent warned.   
  
The toned twenty-something hit the floor carefully and shielded himself as a little debris fell from the ceiling. He sighed and wiped sweat from his face, tired. Canadian, the heat had almost destroyed him when he first arrived in Egypt. Collecting himself, he clicked his flashlight on and smiled as he examined the new artifacts…   
  
"This is the oldest one yet…" he said softly, staring with mild concentration - more to himself, but he knew his partner was listening. He glanced back towards the hole, raising his voice slightly, "No one's seen this stuff in over 3000 years, Freddy." He grinned.  
  
"Just be careful, Fox." The other replied, looking through for the first time. "We can't afford anymore-"   
  
"Oh, relax. The accident last week was-"  
  
Someone screamed in absolute TERROR.   
  
It echoed through the halls… echoing and echoing… The pair silently listened to the sound bounce from wall to wall, fading away - their gazes locked in fright.  
  
After a moment's silence… there came a horrible, sickening… rumbling…  
  
For a moment the entire underground temple trembled, more debris trickling down upon them. Everything shook… the tunnels filling with thick, gray dust. Choking, they lost all visibility as the tremor continued…  
  
Finally, the rumble died away… and all was still and silent.  
  
The two explorers were now literally coated in a layer of dust and dirt. It looked as though they'd been floured. Gray and disgusting flour… The pair blinked, their eyes hurting…  
  
Fox opened his mouth to speak, when suddenly, the quivering started up again - only this time, it meant business. The roof began to give and the partners didn't waste a second. Fred helped him out and they flashed down the tunnels, praying they'd make it before-  
  
The roof started down on them. They carried on, running harder…  
  
Freddy was a nearly a decade older, but he was very swift and agile, therefore, he was in the lead. He rounded the bend first and let out a startled cry, before leaping aside reflexively.  
  
Fox rounded the bend a few paces behind and didn't see the source of panic. He slipped on freshly spilt blood and started to fall backwards…   
Everything in slow motion, he tumbled back. The last thing he heard was   
Fred snapping out his name in shock, before the very back of his head connected with the dirty, stone floor… HARD…  
  
~~~  
  
"Now, people…" Phil was explaining, uneasy. "As strange as this sounds… the people living this far out don't have televisions or anything. They don't know much of world news… therefore, they don't know about you guys…"  
  
"We've addressed isolation, Phil." Wing sighed. "I mean, there are people living in America who've never heard of us."  
  
"Good point. Good point." Phil admitted, as they walked on.  
  
"Speaking of points…" Duke cut in. "Come to one."  
  
"Oh, right." Phil muttered. "I'm just telling ya… we're going to slink through this area… avoid all contact with people… because… well… frankly, you'll scare the heck out of them, OK?"  
  
"Understood." Mallory answered for the collective.  
  
"Besides, there's no profit in meeting them." Phil shrugged it off.  
  
The ducks scowled at this, but said nothing.  
  
"So, we're going to have to rough it though the desert." He added.  
  
"We rough it all the time!" Mallory snapped.  
  
"We're a Military Resistance, Phil." Tanya agreed, a little offended.  
  
"Phil has a point." Wing sighed again, Phil and the heat draining him. "Since we've been relocated here on Earth… we've softened."  
  
"Plus, deserts aren't exactly something we deal with back home." Duke muttered. "MAN, I'm roasting…"   
  
"We're ALL roasting!" Nosedive hissed. "Why state the obvious!?"  
  
"I hate to break it to you, people…" Grin looked over his shoulder. "…but the heat is causing us to molt."  
  
The ducks froze and turned to him.  
  
"Molt?" Wing looked concerned. "Molt?"  
  
Mallory and Tanya paled, exchanging glances.   
  
"Molt?" Nosedive blinked. "Sounds like a rockin' dance move!"  
  
"Um… Dive… allow me to translate…" his brother was miserable. "Jeylez."  
  
Nosedive's eyes bulged and he pushed past Grin, panicked. Sure enough… a trail of multicolored feathers marked their path.  
  
"That's impossible!" Tanya snapped, embarrassed. "It's-"  
  
"It's the heat. It's like shedding." Phil didn't understand the problem.  
  
"Shedding? Like that cat I saved from the tree?" Wing paled further.   
  
"Yes. You were all covered with black fur, remember?" Phil insisted.  
  
Wing coughed, "Oh… wow…"  
  
Puberty all over again. AH.  
  
"Relax…" Phil still didn't get it. "It'll help with the heat."  
  
"Hey!" Nosedive froze. "Does anyone else see that site over there?"  
  
"It's obviously a mirage." Mallory muttered, then looked herself. She gasped - "Hey! I really DO see an archeological site over the next peak."  
  
"Is that… an ancient temple?" Phil also gasped. "Oh! Wow!"  
  
"What's the big deal?" Nosedive opened his canteen, a little irritated.   
  
"It's an ancient pile of rocks. It's a miracle its still on one piece."  
  
Wing smiled, "Remember when they unearthed that ancient statue of Drake Ducaine in our home city? This is kind of like that…"  
  
Dive wasn't listening. He was spelling his name in the sand with their remaining water.  
  
"AH!" Mallory slapped it out of his hands, but it was already empty.  
  
"What? We've found civilization, Mal. We're fine." Dive hissed.  
  
"NO communication." Phil glared, stepping between them. "Remember how the people in Cairo freaked out when they saw you? Just think how these isolated desert folk are going to react to you alien ducks!?"  
  
"Take it easy, Phil. YOU walk over and beg for water." Dive sighed.  
  
"I… it'll look really suspicious, me being out here alone…"  
  
"Improvise." Duke shoved him ahead. "You're a born liar, man."  
  
"Exactly. Meanwhile, we'll just hide behind the…" Dive trailed off, looking around. "…the… sand?"  
  
"This isn't going to work." Tanya groaned.  
  
"Not with an attitude like th-" Dive stopped speaking and followed her gaze. She was looking at the large group of people who were standing before the camp now… staring at them silently.  
  
"Oh super." He finished.  
  
"This desert is so flat." Tanya muttered. "They saw us coming miles and miles ago, guys…"  
  
"Oh super." Dive repeated, even less thrilled then before, if possible.  
  
"Well…" Wing cleared his throat. "We…"  
  
"We're desperate for water, thanks to a certain someone." Mal glared.  
  
"It's not like we had more than a mouthful left anyway." Dive snapped.  
  
"He's right." Duke sided with him.   
  
Dive added, "Doing what I did actually saved us, because we would have passed this place… and then ran out of water in the middle of nowhere… then we would have tried to find our way back… gotten lost… and died."  
  
"That's very true." Duke continued. "However, we ARE in the middle of-"  
  
"I meant even more so." Dive spat out his tongue like a small child.  
  
"Who didn't pack enough water anyway?" Mallory demanded.   
  
"Well, if Phil didn't barter it off left, right and center…"   
  
"GUYS! While we're standing here being childish-" Wing started.   
  
"-there approaching swiftly!" Tanya finished.  
  
"We're going to DIE!" Phil ducked behind the group.  
  
"You said that fifteen minutes back and it was a shadow." Grin sighed.   
"Just relax, Phil. We've been in way worse fixes then this."  
  
A dagger whizzed through the air and landed at the duck's feet.  
  
"Oh super." was Grin's take on the scenario.  
  
"Did anyone else notice Grin's friendship with ME has really changed him?" Nosedive inserted.  
  
No one answered, for more daggers flew forward and they were forced to duck behind the closest thing to a sand dune and raise an extra T-shirt as a surrender flag.  
  
The native workers continued to approach. They stopped, their weapons drawn, pointing at the heroes throats…  
  
Suddenly, a middle aged, Spanish man forced his way through the crowd, to the front, speaking to them in Egyptian. The ducks exchanged expressions - none of them spoke the local language. The well dressed man saw this and tried again in Spanish. When the ducks still failed to understand, the natives became provoked again, and their weapons were once more raised.  
  
The fellow finally tried English… BINGO… he started, "Greetings. I see from your white flag, you have surrendered and you will do us no harm. Excellent." his accent was thick.  
  
"Actually, I consider it more of a beige…" Dive was holding the shirt.  
  
The ducks glared at him, as the spears were pressed against their throats. "Never mind." His voice was tiny.  
  
The Spanish fellow motioned for his men to relax and continued to speak to the strangers in English. "Forgive my workers. They don't watch much television. They've never seen hockey, let alone the famous Mighty Ducks of America."  
  
"Told you." Phil muttered.  
  
"I thought the Egyptian gods looked very much like us." Grin commented.   
  
"That's right! Animals, like rams, in the form of humans." Tanya agreed.  
  
The man chuckled. "Ducks? In Egypt? Surely, you jest."  
  
"Well, if you recognized us, how is it you didn't know to speak English to us?" Mallory asked, suspicious.  
  
The man smiled politely, "Forgive me, please. I assumed you would be   
more…" He hesitated. "…worldly."  
  
Duke looked offended, but said nothing.  
  
Wing replied with, "Oh. Well. We speak English. Which ironically happens to be a very similar dialect to Earth English. A few words different here and there, but for the most part-"  
  
"Molt." Dive chuckled, remembering that difference.  
  
Mallory cleared her throat, ignoring him, "Who are you, anyway?"  
  
Sensing he'd somehow offended the ducks, even though he hadn't meant to, the Spanish savior quickly apologized, and added. "I am Senior Deigo Martinez. I am the benefactor of this archeological dig. These are a few of my many men. We have been exploring this ancient temple you see before you for nearly six years now." For good measure he shook each of their hands adding, "It is such an honour to meet the heroes who have saved our planet from destruction so many times."  
  
Dive was the last to shake his hand. "Pleasure, dude. You're alright."  
  
Martinez seemed very relieved to receive the teens' seal of approval and smiled gratefully, adding. "I know what's it like to be stranded from home for such a very long time, my friends. Just as your work keeps you from you home… my work keeps me from mine."  
  
Wing was surprised, "How is it you know so much about us? The media doesn't really-"  
  
Mallory interrupted, still suspicious, "You don't seem surprised to see us here in Egypt at all."   
  
"It's true." the man smiled proudly. "My beloved Fredrico knows much of you. He's been expecting a visit from you for sometime now."  
  
"Who?" Nosedive blinked.  
  
"Fredrico?" Wing was equally confused.   
  
"Come with me, please." Martinez ignored their questions and started to lead them back to camp. "I would be honoured if you would remain in my camp as honoured guests…"  
  
"You need to learn a few more adjectives there, bud." Dive teased.  
  
Wing glared at his brother and replied, "How very kind, but…"  
  
Martinez sensed refusal and quickly added, "My Fredrico will be so pleased to see you, great heroes."  
  
"Wing, are you INSANE?! What an AMAZING photo op!" Phil shoved their   
leader aside and shook the man's hand. "Hi there, Martin, or whatever…"  
  
"Off to a great start." sighed Wing, managing to keep his balance.  
  
"…I'm Phil Pomfeather - the duck's manager. What a perfect opportunity you've just presented my team! Just imagine! The Mighty Ducks on an archeological exploration of an ancient temple! It'll make ALL the magazines for sure!"   
  
"Phil. We can't impose like that." Wing tried to insert, blunt.  
  
"Of course we can." Phil smiled cheerfully. He still hadn't let go of Martinez hand. He continued to shake it… faster and faster with excitement. "This is going to be SO great! This is a once and a life time deal! I'M going to dig in an ancient temple!"  
  
Martinez smiled warmly and pulled his hand away. "Of course, Senior."  
  
"Phil…" Wing sighed, obviously batting his options about. "Oh fine. Since we're out of water, and in need of a comfortable nights sleep…"  
  
"And don't forget out little fan Fredrico!" Dive interrupted.  
  
"Right, that well informed fan definitely deserves an autograph!" Phil added happily, patting the camera around his neck.   
  
"It's settled then." Martinez would agree to anything in order to have the heroes remain in his camp. "I repeat, please follow me."  
  
This time no one hesitated.  
  
"Thanks for asking the rest of us…" Mallory started to complain.  
  
"Mal. Hush." Wing was very blunt.  
  
"Who the hell's this Fredrico guy?" Tanya uneasy.  
  
"Some fan." Grin shrugged.  
  
"Who absolutely EXPECTS a visit from us HERE?" she insisted.  
  
"Some CRAZY fan…"   
  
"I dunno…" she turned to Wildwing.  
  
"Ya… sounds like he knows us…" Wing agreed, equally cautious.  
  
"We don't know ANY Freds, man…" Dive cut in.  
  
"OH NO…" Mallory was sarcastic. "Only the janitor, the plummer, your   
first tutor, the-"  
  
"Whatever, whatever, whatever…" Dive shut her up quickly, annoyed.  
  
Moments later, the entire group was standing in the middle of the camp… which was a roughly two hundred feet from the actual temple site. There were tents, supplies and equipment set up all over - it was obvious the people lived and worked here year round.  
  
"How rude of us not to introduce ourselves…" Wild realized, when they'd stood in silence for a moment. "I'm Wildwing. This is-"  
  
"Oh, there's no need for further introductions, kind hero. If I had not already known your honoured names… I would have inquired."  
  
"Say what now?" Dive asked aloud.   
  
"He already knows our names. That's why he didn't ask." Grin was flat.  
  
"Let me guess. Fredrico?" Mallory sighed. "Where is this guy?"  
  
"Is he your son?" Wing asked, trying to cover the other's rudeness.  
  
Martinez chuckled, "I'm surprised you don't know the answer. You've know each other many years." Seeing their confusion, he added, "No, no, Senior - he's not my son. Not biologically anyway. However, I do very much consider Freddy the son I was never blessed with naturally. I am unable to have children, sadly."   
  
Mallory softened. "I'm sorry. We'd love to meet him."  
  
"Right away!" Martinez smiled proudly. "He's truly remarkable."  
  
As they walked on the group racked their brains… desperately trying to remember Fredrico…   
  
Tanya, however, was distracted - "Look at how indifferent these workers and archeologists are towards us…"   
  
"You'd think they'd lived with one of us for years or something." Duke agreed. "They-"  
  
"Fredrico, my pride and joy!" Martinez called to the tent before them.  
  
"Greetings!" a familiar figure stepped out, cheerful.  
  
The ducks froze. Their jaws literally dropped.  
  
It was Falcone. 


	2. Fox and Freddy?

WHEN JACKALS DROWN  
Chapter Two: Fox and Freddy?  
  
~~~  
  
DISCLAIMER:  
  
MDTAS belongs to Disney! Everything else... like Senior Martinez, Quincy Fox... and Fester... belong to me. Well, not Egypt, but ya know what I mean, right? ;)  
  
A/N:  
  
Ya, I wrote this YEARS ago and really should'a editted more. Ah well. I was young and... nah, I'm still foolish. BTW, ya, I know his name's Ernie - but read on and see what I'm doing. :) PLEASE REVIEW!!!! Thanks very much. Later days! ^_^  
  
It was Falcone.   
  
Nosedive was the first to find his voice after a very long, shocked silence: "No way! Fal? You look SO different! 10 years younger! New style screams volumes now too…" He trailed off, seeing the horrible, horrible glares everyone (save Duke) was giving him. Melting into silence, he a mumbled an unintelligible apology.  
  
Duke, absolutely floored, finally snapped out of it - "Falcone? How?"  
  
"Duke. Charmed. How ever have you been?"   
  
Duke, unexpectedly, with alarming speed, cracked. Three shades red, he roared, lunging forward, ready to strangle his former best friend.   
  
Martinez, with shocking speed himself, actually blocked his path. Knowing he couldn't take his rage out on the kind, helpless older man… Duke halted suddenly, very surprised.  
  
"I cannot allow you to harm my Fredrico." was the cold explanation.  
  
Duke nearly screamed into his throat, frustrated. Instead, he forced himself to calm down and to think rationally. "Will someone… please tell me… what the HELL is going on here!?" he managed after a moment through gritted teeth. He HAD to be dreaming. This was just CRAZY!  
  
Wing considered stepping in, but saw the extreme and hatred that was bubbling just below the gray surface… ready to burst at any given moment and thought better of it. It wasn't his place.  
  
"Why aren't you in jail?!" Duke demanded when he got no answer.  
  
This question surprised Falcone. "Don't you know? I was paroled."  
  
"Who in their right mind would let you out of prison?" Mallory came to Duke's aid when she saw he was too shocked and angry to speak.  
  
"Actually…" the falcon admitted, sounding a little embarrassed. "I behaved myself for a few years… and B&E isn't the end of the world on this planet… so I was paroled easily."  
  
Duke found his voice and was surprised by how calm it came out. "Why is it we were never informed of your parole?"  
  
"I say he's lying. He-" Mallory started to accused.  
  
"I'm shocked you never heard, old boy." Fal admitted honestly. "The Media had an absolute field day, even more so than when I was originally arrested."   
  
"What?" the entire team found this hard to believe.  
  
Duke noticed Phil behind them, edging away, looking very uneasy.  
  
"Phil…" he growled, without looking back.  
  
The manager froze. There was silence for a moment before the man's conscience got him and he confessed. "OK! OK! I'm sorry, Duke! While you were in outer space playing that space hockey with the Wombats-"  
  
"Don't tell me this whole thing went down those few days we were off that planet?" Duke found it hard to believe.  
  
Phil nodded, actually looking ashamed. "I didn't mention it because…"  
  
"Because…" Duke prompted, trying not to lose his temper all over again.  
  
Phil blurted the truth out quickly. "I knew you'd be so distracted with issues about your past that you wouldn't have your mind on the game… and the play-offs were coming up fast and…"  
  
"Phil! How could you NOT tell me this?! This is huge!" Duke snapped.  
  
Phil was about to answer, but Duke turned away, returning his attention to his rival. "You? Good behavior? What's your angle?"  
  
Fal sighed, "It's a really long story, old friend…"  
  
"Don't call me FRIEND." Duke spat, his tone venom. "EVER."  
  
"Don't call him OLD either. He's very sensitive about his age." Dive added. Duke glared at him, and the teen shriveled into the backdrop again.  
  
Duke continued, "It's a long story you're going to tell me. NOW."  
  
Fal smiled cheerfully, "Actually, Duke, we have much to do and little daylight left. Can it wait an hour, please?"  
  
"Please? PLEASE?" Mallory spat, surprised.  
  
At the mention of the word 'WORK' - the only English word Martinez' men understood - they all started to gather around and await instructions.  
  
"You're actually working on this dig?" Wing had been silent long enough.   
  
"Senior Martinez." Duke turned to their host. "This alien has been lying to you. His name isn't Fred-"  
  
"Oh. I am aware of his past sins, Senior L'orange. He truly repents and has started afresh with a new name." Martinez replied.  
  
"HOW can you trust this guy!?"  
  
"Can't you see he's faking, Senior?" Mallory added, frustrated. "He's pretending to by loyal to you, when really, he's just out to snatch whatever precious artifacts you should happen to find here!"  
  
Martinez frowned at the accusations. "Excuse me, but my Fredrico has worked among us for 5 years now and-"  
  
"He's playing you." Duke warned.  
  
"I trust him." Martinez replied, stubborn, firm.  
  
"It's a mistake, pal. A dangerous one. He'll stab you in the back every time. I was his best friend and look what he's done to me!" Duke continued, frustrated.  
  
"I trust him!" Martinez repeated.   
  
A handsome young man with aqua hair and dark eyes slipped out of a nearby tent and approached quickly with an ice pack held to the back of his skull. "What's the problem?" he demanded.  
  
"Quince!" the falcon was startled to see the other up and about.  
  
"What's going on?" the young man repeated, agitated. "What-"  
  
"We're the Mighty Ducks and this liar is deceiving you." Duke replied.  
  
"I know who you are, I know your story with Fred - but, know this - Ernie Falcone is dead. Fredico Martinez is a great guy. The best of guys. The past is just that - past. If you've got a problem-"   
  
"LOOK, kid, don't you walk on the scene and try and tell ME shit!" Duke was pissed. "Don't you DARE just show up and think you know ANYTHING - let alone, EVERYTHING - about this guy, about our past, about-"  
  
"DON'T-" Both were advancing, seething.  
  
"Quince! Duke!" Fal stepped forward. He turned to the youth, annoyed and concerned. "You can barely walk. You in no condition to be-"  
  
"HE comes HERE and starts stuff and you-"  
  
"Quin."   
  
You did your time-"  
  
"QUIN."  
  
"You did your time, Freddy! Past is past! He has no right to show up-"  
  
"You don't know him the way I do!" Duke snapped. "Don't you DARE pretend to be his best friend or whatever the HELL-"  
  
"Enough!" Senior Martinez stepped between the two parties.  
  
"I agree." Wing joined him in the center. "Let's talk-"  
  
"No talking." Martinez interrupted. "Due to this irrational argument we have lost a good quarter of an hour. We must use our remaining sun to complete today's work. WORK." The men all nodded and started to gather their equipment again.  
  
"Senior…" Quincy started to protest.  
  
Martinez gave a hard, silent hand gesture - its meaning unmistakable. His ears were off, his word was final. Enough. The Spaniard slipped into his tent and that was the last the ducks saw of him for the evening. This was a sign to all, save the strangers, that Freddy was in charge.  
  
Quincy gave a short screech of frustration and slammed some stuff, leaving. He hated being dismissed. He hated it.  
  
Watching the young man storm off, fuming, Falcone turned back to the ducks and gave a sheepish chuckle. "Excuse me for a moment, will you?"   
  
Jogging after Fox, he caught him by the arm and started to whisper, at first friendly, then stern hissing when the boy snapped. Pulling him back when he tried to huff off again, the falcon was clearly telling Quincy Fox off. The ducks exchanged a glance wondering if he was angry or… disciplinary. It was probably a combination, but surprisingly seemed more the latter.  
  
Duke, unlike the others, with his honed skills, could hear every word. It had started with Falcone's friendly attempt to put out the forest fire and instantly crossed into further disagreement over Duke and eventually their very excavation…   
  
"Freddy, L'orange has no right to hunt you down, barge on the scene and start a fight. He lunged at you, damn it! I saw the look, Fred - he was going straight for the jugular. He wanted to choke you dead."  
  
"I don't blame him. Stuff happened."  
  
"That was then, this is now. You never bothered him. You've changed. You didn't go after him for revenge. You didn't try to - I mean, HE started this with you. HE-"   
  
"Foxy, please-"  
  
"Forget it, forget it. Just whatever, alright. Just as long as they leave…" He trailed off, silent for a moment. Very unexpectedly, he slammed more stuff, "DAMN IT! I hate it when Marty does that! He just blows me off!"  
  
The falcon said nothing. What could he say?  
  
Another sound of frustration. Fox started towards the dig. "Come on, you heard the man, we-"  
  
"I don't think it best to return to work. We should call in an inspector. Enough is enough. How many people have to die?"  
  
The other didn't reply right away. He didn't even glance back. He just stood there, his back having stiffened. His expression softening, he studied the clearly nervous and unhappy workers for a moment as they carried out their tasks of preparation.  
  
"Marty said-"  
  
"Marty's off. I'm on."  
  
"Go to He-"  
  
Fred caught his arm again, tighter, stopping him from huffing off again. "My gestures are just as powerful as his, Quince. I'm skipper now. This isn't a democracy. We shut this thing down before it shuts this entire project down. Shuts US down. Is that clear?"   
  
Quincy hesitated, pissed. Finally - "FINE."  
  
Clapping his hands to get the men's attention he signaled it was time to call 'er a day…  
  
Falcone pulled away and with a simple motion of his head, a young boy, of no more than 16, standing with a dog of some sort, understood the given command and started speaking to the workers in their native tongue.   
  
"Tell them we're going to rest a few days to solve this problem."  
  
With that, Fredrico Martinez, after exchanging one more hard expression with Quincy Fox, who was standing with the men, turned and stormed away himself.   
  
Duke wasn't going to let him off that easy. He sprinted after, catching up, annoyed. "Now… can we talk?"  
  
Fal, now known as Fred, forced a smile, though he was still peeved with his work. "Of course, Duke."  
  
Duke started to follow Freddy to his tent, but glanced back at his friends, "I'll see you in a bit." Was all his could think to say.  
  
Wing frowned. "I don't like this."  
  
"Duke just wants the story." Dive reassured him.  
  
"No, no." Wing muttered. "I trust Duke. I just DON'T trust Falcone."  
  
"No one does." Mallory agreed, her voice wobbling with anger. "I don't know what that fight way about… or why they stopped work, but-"  
  
"What's he doing here anyway?" Tanya interrupted. "I mean, what are the odds?"   
  
"And what's with the sudden change in attitude and appearance?" Nosedive was still amazed. "Could he really-"  
  
"Don't even think it." Mallory snarled. "He's more the same than ever. This is just a ploy to raid this site once they hit treasure."  
  
"A five year ploy?" Wildwing wasn't so sure.  
  
~~~ 


End file.
